INGLEWOOD, Calif. (June 1, 2008) - Pedestrian fractions didn't hinder late-running Big Booster in Sunday's first running of the $102,802 Gallant Man Handicap at Hollywood Park.
Last most of the way as Victorian Prince set a leisurely pace, Big Booster did his running in the final three furlongs, easily rallying under jockey Rafael Bejarano to score a two-length victory in the 1 5/8-mile race on Cushion Track.
Eastern shipper Jade's Revenge, who stalked Victorian Prince, held on to finish second, a nose in front of Tissy Fit. Victorian Prince finished last in the field reduced to four with the scratches of Super Strut, Marsh Side and Top This and That.
Big Booster, a 7-year-old gelding trained by Mike Mitchell, won for the tenth time in 44 starts - three of the wins coming in 11 starts since he was claimed for $62,500 by owners Scott and Wayne Anastasi and James Ukegawa last February at Gulfstream Park. His biggest victory came in his previous start when he won the San Juan Capistrano Handicap.
"He can go this far and he clowns around when he makes the lead but it was a good race," Mitchell said. "You can't go by pace, you just have to let him run his race. I don't care how slow they're going, this is the way he wants to run, so you just wait and wait and wait."
Big Booster carried high weight of 119 pounds while covering the distance in 2:44.48. He paid $3 as the 1-2 favorite. The victory - worth $62,949 - boosted his earnings to $701,382.
"My horse loves to come from behind," Bejarano said. "There was only three other horses in the race and I knew we were going real, real slow. But I didn't have to worry because my horse has a real big kick. At the half-mile pole, when I let him go he was just galloping and making up ground on his own. When I hit him left-handed he did something funny, like kind of jumping. He didn't like it too much. I just rode him the rest of the way and he won easily."
Bejarano rode two winners and leads the jockeys' standings with 32 wins at the halfway mark of the 60-day meeting. Victor Espinoza is second with 20 wins.
